Latino group to run ads hitting Arizona Democrat over Obamacare

A conservative Latino advocacy group plans to target a vulnerable Democratic congressman over President Obama’s health care law.

The LIBRE Initiative plans to spend around $500,000 on television and digital buys in the coming weeks that go after Rep. Ron Barber of Arizona, said Daniel Garza, the group’s executive director.

LIBRE, which touts itself as a free-market outreach group, receives funding from a conservative network tied to the billionaire brothers Charles and David Koch. It previously has spent $1.4 million on ads targeting two other Democrats, Florida Rep. Joe Garcia and Texas Rep. Pete Gallego, Garza said.

Barber’s Tucson-area contest is one of the most competitive House races this year, making it a key target for outside groups. Another Koch-affiliated group, Americans for Prosperity, also has targeted Barber in recent months.

This year’s contest could be a rematch of the previous election: One of the Republicans candidates, retired Air Force colonel Martha McSally, lost to Barber by fewer than 2,500 votes in 2012.

Garza, a former official in George W. Bush’s administration, said the Affordable Care Act “is fundamentally flawed because it is a government mandate.”

His group does a wide array of outreach efforts to Latinos, ranging from offering online GED courses and free tax-preparation services to running health clinics. It operates offices in eight states.

Barber was not a member of Congress when Obama signed the Affordable Care Act into law in 2010.

Barber’s campaign spokesman Rodd McLeod said the congressman does not back a repeal of the law, but has voted to make changes to it, including a delay of the requirement that individuals who don’t have health-insurance coverage by the end of this month pay a fine. He said most voters in the district share Barber’s view that the law “does good things but needs to be fixed.”

McLeod said the new round of advertising is part of an attempt by the Kochs to “eliminate the minimum wage and get rid of Social Security and Medicare.”